Information Communication Technologies and Distance Educatio
Abstract
We entered into 21st century with a pledge to transform it into a knowledge society. Knowledge society demands knowledge workers. It is beyond the acquisition of literacy and summary skills and functional social awareness.
The educational delivery system, through the ages, has been undergoing change. What started as oral instruction, with the advent of Audio & Visual gadgets has acquired innovative educational technologies for dissemination of knowledge and information. Further more computers and satellite based communication has totally changed pace and face of educational technologies. Today for that matter we are in an ICT era. We need to effect change in educational delivery system by optimally utilizing the available ICTs; for this would ensure flawless massification of education devoid of congestion in the flow of, be it information or skill transference.
In the process of evolving such an innovative ICT based educational delivery system, we have several stakeholders, whose initiative and dynamic interaction is required. The stakeholders include, the State (Provincial) Governments, Educators and ICT experts / industry.
This paper elaborates on the following aspects:
1. The present status of ICT from the point of view of available platform for offering education/training programmes.
2. The required strategies for designing and dissemination of content for the present ICT platform.
3. The strategy required for the networking and sharing of resources for optimizing the quality of distance education programmes, in terms of creating e-education through virtual classroom, virtual text books, etc.
4. “Learning and Teaching On-Line” – what it holds for the future distance education? Perspective and Prospects.
Key words: Information Communication Technologies; Distance Education
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Introduction
We need to prepare our selves to enter the fast-paced, ever changing and exciting environment called Information Technology to exploit its full potential for use in Distance Education. Even before we jump into this arena for exploitative exploration, let us note a bit the happenings around, the forces and the factors shaping the present and future environment, be it business, education or governance.
Today we are in the Information Age. It is an age where knowledge is power. To live and love the times we need ‘knowledge workers’. It is the endeavour of education system to prepare the individual to enter the knowledge society as a ‘knowledge worker’.
In the Information Age it is important to know/have the information appropriate to time, content and form. The information that is with the individual or the information that is to be given to the individual should be the information that is relevant to time; relevant in content; and is in the relevant form. This relevance of information is one dimension; whereas closely on heels we have level of information. It is not simply sufficient to think of giving/providing information relevant to time, content and in form. In the making of knowledge worker level of information is also an important dimension. This is important because we have to decide as to what kind of knowledge worker we have in mind. Is it sufficient if one is aware of basic facts and has skills so as to settle down as a professional with pieces of information? Or, are we looking for an expert, who with his or her knowledge provides expertise to the concerned field? Or in evolving a person who with insights as innovator contributes for the over all development. To begin with we need all. But, to result in a knowledge society we need knowledge workers with insight. Knowledge worker works with and produces knowledge.
Information Communication Technologies
The “Information Communication Technologies’ referred to herein, in fact, is a compound to two technologies – Information Technologies and Communication Technologies which contributed for the emergence of an innovative approach in delivery of educational goods and services. Now, let us examine them, to start with independently and later together for their combined contribution.
Information Technologies
We exist, having emerged, as an institution, be it a Center for Distance Education, State Open University, National Open University, or an Open University System with international service area, with a corresponding structure unique to the type of the institution. It is an organization to be specific that is the basic partner in the wholistic interactive Information Technology system. It is stated that Information in an organization is composed of three distinct components: 1. an organization; 2. information in an organization; and, 3. Information Technology system in an organization.
As Organization :
As an organization meant for dissemination of Information, knowledge, and skills to the willing learners we have a structure that goes with it. The structure includes in addition to Academic & Administrative/Finance wings, a component that’s constantly in touch with the clientele group viz., the students, i.e., student support services. It is the quality of student support services that speaks or reflects the quality of distance education. The Academic wing while laying down the policy, implements the designed programs; it is the student support services using that can guide the academic wing by serving as a bridge between the student and the programme designers; so that relevant program and good learning materials are evolved by the academic wing. This is apart from ensuring a reliable examination/assessment system and the responsive administrative system.
Information in an organization:
To make the system work and show that it is functionally conducive, there is a need to ensure incessant flow of information. On the examination of the existing structures as presented above, it isevident that the wings within are both in vertical and horizontal planes of operation. Of course all this requires functional linkages, which is only made possible with “Upward”, “Downward” and “Horizontal” flow of information. For upward flow of information enables us to know as to “How the organization is operating and transactions that have occurred?”. The downward flow of information facilitates percolation of strategies, goals and directive’s from top to the utmost bottom line of implementation layers, and horizontal flow of information ensures communications among various functional units and working groups. This “Intranet” supports information flow within the organization.
Information Processing in an organization:
Mostly people take information processing as arithmetically manipulating information. Information processing extends well beyond arithmetic. The information processing involves five tasks: Capturing, Conveying, Creating, Cradling and Communicating information.
(i) Capturing information means obtaining information at its point of origin.
(ii) Conveying information involves presenting information in its most useful form(printed, graphic, audio, video,etc.,) to people who need it.
(iii) Creating information involves processing information to obtain new information. Creating information takes on two forms: Transaction processing and Analytical processing. Transaction processing enables creation of data bases of various transactions that are taking place within the organization. Analytical processing implies creating information to support decisions – making task.
(iv) Cradling information involves study of information for use at a later time.
(v) Communication information involves sending information to other people or to another location.
(vi) This is achieved through Telecom Technologies, such as modems, digital pagers, satellites and micro-waves.
Information Technology Systems:
Now, let us turn our attention towards the Information Technology Systems that are in use, which help perform the above tasks. It is to be noted here that the task at our hand should govern identifying and adopting the appropriate Information Technology system. Which are these Information Technology systems in use today? As per Haag, Cummings & Dawkins(2000), they are:
1. Transaction Processing System
2. Custom Integrated System
3. Management Information System
4. Work-group Support System
5. Decision Support System & Artificial Intelligence
6. Executive Information System
7. Inter Organizational System
· Transaction Processing System (TPS) is mainly responsible for capturing information; creating new information; cradling information (storing); and conveying information.
· Customer Integrated System (CIS) is an extension of a Transaction Processing System that places technology in the hands of an organization’s customers and allows them to process their own transaction.
· Management Information System (MIS) helps us to access the information captured, processed and cradled or stored by Transaction Processing Systems and Customer Integrated Systems. A Management Information System (MIS) provides periodic and predetermined reports that summarize information within a database. Management Information Systems are also called Management Alerting Systems, as they alert the managements to the existence of problems and opportunities, which help management to take appropriate action.
· Workgroup Support System (WSS) is designed specifically to improve the performance of teams by supporting the sharing and flow of information. The underlying software or groupware include e-mail, electronic bulletin boards, intranets, video conferencing etc.
· Decision Support Systems and Artificial Intelligence are Information Technology Tools that create information through analytical processing to facilitate decision making tasks that require significant effort and analysis. Decision Support Systems are interactive in nature. They enable us to (1) perform a series of “what-if” analysis to see how certain inputs will affect the outputs and (2) use different modeling tools to analyze information (with the help of ANOVA, Regression etc.).
· Executive Information System is a highly interactive Management Information System combined with Decision Support System and Artificial Intelligence for helping the manager identify and address problems and opportunities.
· Inter Organizational Systems (IOS) automate the flow of information between the organizations to support the Planning, Design, Development and production delivery of products and services.
We have seen the Information Processing Tasks that go with an organization and Information Technology Systems in vogue for use in the organization. Now the question arises as to “What Information Technology tools do we need corresponding to the Information Processing Tasks”. As the things stand we can derive from the literature and practices the following match between processes and tools.
Information Processing Technology Tool Devices
Capturing InformationConveying Information Creating InformationCradling Information Communicating Information Input TechnologyOutput TechnologySoftware TechnologyStorage TechnologyTelecom Technology Keyboard, Mouse, Automatic, Speech Recognition System, Touch Screen; optical Mark Recognition, optical character Recognition; Magnetic, Ink Character Recognition. Printer, Screen, Monitor, Sound Output, Speech ing System Software & Application Software (windows, MS-Office, AuthorwareTools, etc.,)CDs, DVDs, Floppy Disks, Backup facility, HD capacity (Both internal and external).Network (Both Centralized, Distributed and Hybrid)- LAN, WAN.
· The most visible and explosive Information Technology tool is the INTERNET. People find Internet as a most enjoyable, simpler and easy-to-use computer based tool. TheInternet is basically a network of networked computers all over the world.
· World Wide Web is the Internet in a linked multimedia form. [Before the web, the Internet was all text-based].
· Cable-Net : A marriage between Cable TV and Internet has resulted in cable – net & with DTH [TV reception enabled Direct to Home] cable-net is going to be “the future” net delivery mode for products & services in the field of Distance Education.
Content Generation for the ICT Platform:
A closer examination of the emergence of distance education reveals that the formal education had its excessive leanings on it. During the times of the correspondence courses system instructional material was created as designed (or desired) by the experts within the formal system. For a long time to come such study material was in use wherein quality of content was measured in terms of load of knowledge given in tons. Later on things have changed and lesson proper was presented in the form of units enabling easy understanding by the learner. With the introduction of education by objectives the content also was to take care of the taxonomy based educational objectives viz., knowledge, understanding, application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Any piece of information or knowledge to be given to the recipent i.e. learner has to address itself to these educational objectives. This in fact has made the instructional material forcibly restricting itself to this structure without any flexibility to deviate from the norm. this has resulted in teaching what is given in the books in the lesson, in the unit, rather than exploring beyond and enlarging the vision. With the strong foundation laid for alternative system of education emergence of open learning systems relevance and flexibility were given prominence and the quantum of information to be transmitted was looked upon as that amount which the recipient can absorb with ease, thus resulting in the desired learning.
In other words, wer have confronted with a format i.e., today we call as self-instructional module. Modular structure of learning unit and the self-instructional mode that is built into it has become rightly the order of the day as far as the distance learning mode is concerned. There is not only ease in learning but the construction of the curriculum ensures the learner to acquire the required knowledge at his or her own pace. This enabled content and pace of learning is the greatest boon showered on the distance education system.
Now with the information and Communication Technologies available to the distance education delivery system, content generation acquires utmost importance. We need to create, convey, cradle and communicate information in a conjoint format wherein the partnering components are print, audio, video and web-based multi media learning material. We cannot do away with the print media for its generosity to put on paper the content of yesterday, on-going thinking of the present day and the vision of tomorrow. In addition communication technologies have provided us with the facilities to create content with a mix of text, graphics, with animation added with Audio-Video Clippings, which can be in the video format or on the CD format. Of course creation of this kind of material requires lot of ingenuity and creativity on the part of the disseminators of such knowledge. However, its importance cannot be under valued. The advantage with the instructional material has often been stated as that a learner can repeatedly study the lesson by playing back and forth and thus progressing steadily through that course. It ensures progressive, acquisition of knowledge with comfort and confidence of having acquired the knowledge. Thanks to the revolution in Information and Communication Technologies, today we are in a position to reach the door-step of the learner, be it through Internet, or Cable-net, or DTH (Direct to Home Through Dishnet). Distance Education System has to take utmost advantage of this situation, in creation of the content adopting these latest technologies.
Consortium of Distance Education:
Today we are quite often listening to and talking about e-education through virtual classroom, virtual textbooks, etc. Towards this end it appears that we are vying with each other to be ahead of the other and win the race. If we look into the institutional structure and their functioning, growth, development and acquiring prominence it only indicates that each individual institution has its own strengths and weaknesses causing to be ahead or lagging behind. Is it appropriate to live in isolation and de-generate in isolation? Or, re-generate with new vision leaving the vicissitudes behind? Which is appropriate? We ar ein the information age and seen the impact of globalization and liberalization. We need to come out of the isolated systems. Distance Education systems, local, national, and global have to emerge into a consortium through a network and thus pave way for sharing all resources that are available uniquely with each one of them. All this is required to see that the end user i.e., Learner must be benefited by the knowledge, information & skills, transmitted to him. The consortium of distance education systems would also help us to ensure high quality learning. Such a consortium can root out the weaknesses and strengthen the movements of the distance education.
Hope this conference will pave way for emergence of a Consortium of Distance Educators for networking and sharing the resources. The future of distance education mode learning and teaching on-line can be a reality with the cooperative endeavor of all the partners in the distance education system, for the future of the future generations lies in the Distance Education. Let us help them, by paving appropriate path for them.
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